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Effective leadership involves ethical behavior especially in decision making.
An ethical leader must be able to think and feel outside of oneself.
Additionally, there must be a focus on moral awareness. The ability to
identify moral issues within a situation can lead individuals to moral decision
making ( Smith, 2020). Ethical behavior encompasses the heart and mind
when making challenging decisions.
Moral character can be attributed to three main characteristics; Honesty-
Humility, Guilt Proneness, and Moral Identity Centrality (Helzer, 2023). An
ethical leader practices honesty and humility by recognizing and acting upon
people's concerns for fairness, sincerity, and modesty. Guilt proneness refers
to the degree in which an individual feels guilt over their own wrong-doings.
This helps the leader become more trustworthy and credible in the eyes of
the organization. It also guides the leader away from making unscrupulous
business decisions. And moral identity centrality is the degree to which being
moral is crucial to a person's sense of self. A person's moral character or
compass is who they are and how they operate personally and
professionally.
Decisions should be made based upon the shared cultural values of the
organization's members (Baker, 2023). The decision-making process should
consider the view and perspectives of all parties before, during , and after a
decision is made. Adhering to ethical codes ensures good and moral
judgement. The ethical behavior of employees is strongly affected by the
conduct set by the leader. The adage "lead by example" applies to ethical
and moral leadership.
In any organization, decisions need to be made to ensure progress and growth. A leader to
make sound and ethical business decisions must be transparent, responsible, and empathetic
to provide a foundation for good business practices. All leaders and business owners have to
make a lot of important decisions for their company. Before making a sound decision, the
leader must gain self-knowledge to gain self-control. All leaders and business owners must
have good ethical leadership to make sound decisions that benefit all stakeholders and
employees and ensure the long-term success of the company. Leaders can ensure that their
organization operates in a way that is sustainable and responsible. Leaders and business
owners will face challenges in ethical business decisions and guiding standards for values,
behaviors, and better decision-making provide an understanding of what problem or dilemma
you're up against.
Ethical leadership is crucial for fostering a culture of integrity and guiding organizations toward
ethical decision-making (Ncube & Washburn, 2006). Leaders must navigate ethical dilemmas by
carefully considering their values and employing sound decision-making processes. When the
company has a positive work environment the morale of the employees greatly improves, and
